RUDEN Family bond drives Westhill softball to success

Updated 8:48 am, Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Bristol Central's Chandler Walker is safe at first as Westhill's Megan D'Alessandro reaches for the ball during Tuesday's class LL semifinal game against Bristol Central at DeLuca Field in Stratford on June 7, 2011.

STAMFORD -- The first baseman was a third baseman, the third baseman played second base and the centerfielder was a fixture at shortstop.

Six years later, the positions have changed, but the familial bonds between the members of the Westhill High School softball team are stronger than ever.

The storyline during the preseason for the Vikings, who open their season at home Thursday against Masuk, is the quest for a third FCIAC title in four years and second state championship in the past three years.

What those outside the program probably do not realize, for 10 of the team's seniors and juniors, this spring will end a six-year run when they first played together, as members of the Stamford Babe Ruth 12-and-under All-Star team.

"That was my first year actually playing softball," recalled Megan D'Alessandro, the third baseman then who has since moved to the other corner of the infield. "I had played baseball. I remember being nervous trying out. They were so close and I ended up being close with them too. Family close."

That team ended up advancing to the regional championship before it was eliminated.

"We were devastated," D'Alessandro said. "Like end of the world devastated. I think it was because we were so close."

"Allison was just learning how to pitch and threw the ball hard. Kish pitched and she had that sweet swing back then. You knew Allie Souza and Beezer were going to be good," said Pia, referring to Joseph by her nickname.

Besides natural talent, the lock-tight bond formed years ago between the Westhill players has proved a vital commodity for success in high school. Pia said a lot was due to Jen Joseph and Julianne Vincent, the two leaders, both now playing in college, who helped ignite this run. And a lot was due to the remaining players, despite their prior success, leaving their egos at the door once they reached Westhill.

"This is one of the closest knit teams I've been around, and Jen and Julianne were a big reason why," Pia said. "And this group, when they were freshmen and sophomores, they never had that cockiness that they knew they were good. It's a big deal to make the varsity of Westhill. They definitely paid their dues."

The Vikings remarkably went through the regular season 20-0 a year ago, yet came away unfulfilled. They were stunned in the opening round of the FCIAC Tournament after being shutout, then rebounded and reached the state championship game before losing in part because of their own mistakes.

The mood last June was not too different from that regional final game six years ago.

"We definitely don't want that to happen again," D'Alessandro said. "It seems like this is our year to make up for it. Winning championships is the ultimate goal, but we know there are a lot of teams out there that are just as prepared as us and want it as much as we do."

Pia has been working the players hard this spring, and like past years there has been nary a word of complaint. Quite the contrary.

"There's no bitching about three-hour practices or getting up early on Sunday mornings for hitting," he said. "They work hard to help the freshmen. They come from good families and are old-school kids. They really care about one another."

No one knows what will happen over the next two to two and a half months for the Vikings except that when the season ends, an important chapter in the players' lives will be closed.

"We don't really talk about it," said D'Alessandro, a junior who will have one more year at Westhill and is one of the FCIAC's best basketball players. "I don't think a lot of the seniors want to bring it up. They might be saddened by it. All of us from that 12-and-under team are more emotional."

While Pia was not part of that team, he said that a comment by Macari after a recent practice gave him pause to contemplate what the end of this season with these players will mean to him.

"The other day we were in a group and Allison said, `Tommy, are you going to miss us when the year's over?' " he said. "You don't think about it until it happens. Each year when you coach and kids graduate, you lose a little something and something's missing. She made me think about it. This group is just a pleasure to be around. They are a pleasure because they worked to accomplish something. They just like to win."